Californ i a
by ponygurl51090
Summary: I thought I was being sent to Santa Carla to cleanup my act. I was suppose to start a new life. I thought wrong.
1. Chapter 1

_I do not own the movie the Lost Boys or any of the characters in the movie. This is the sequel to The New Kid, so if you haven't read that, read it before you read this._

I stepped out of the car into the bright sunlight. My mom and I had just driven all the way from our home in Lexington, Kentucky to my grandparents' house in Santa Carla, California. I could hear the sound of people on the boardwalk, kids playing on the beach, and seagulls flying high above. I didn't want to be here. I wanted to be home. Mom thought a change of scenery for the new school year would be nice. I got into too much trouble at my old school last year. I probably would've stayed on the straight and narrow if my estranged dad hadn't decided to suddenly butt into my life.

"Come on" said Mom, taking our suitcases up to the house.

"Do I have to?" I asked, leaning against the car.

Mom sighed and put the bags down. She walked quickly over to the car.

"Look" she said, her eyes narrowing in on me, "I know you think I'm doing this to spite you, but I'm not. I'm trying to help you. I don't want to have a repeat of last year."

"Then tell Dad to leave me alone" I said.

"I'm sorry about what happened with your dad, but it's time to start over. Come on" she said, walking back to the suitcases. She picked them up and continued towards the door.

I slowly pushed myself off the car and followed behind.

The house was brown and boxy, like it was a life-size version of a fort a kid built out of cardboard boxes. This is where I was going to be until May of next year. Wonderful.

A short, stout woman with wrinkly skin and graying hair answered the door. She was wearing a simple, blue sundress. Her large feet were stuffed into two tiny blue shoes. Her hands looked like small balls of dough because her stubby fingers curved so much from arthritis pain. Her eyes were a dark brown, the same as mine. Her smile was perfect, with perfectly straightened and whitened teeth.

"April! Kelsey!" she said happily. She pulled us both into a giant bear hug. It had been years since I'd been to my grandparent's house.

"I can't believe you're finally here" said grandma as she showed us into the house.

"It's good to see you too, Mom" said Mom.

"April, we're so happy you are going to be spending the school year with us. It's going to be a banner year for you. I just know it" said Grandma, smiling. The thing I loved about my grandma was she always had faith in me when everyone else doubted me.

My grandpa came in from the kitchen, wearing kahki pants and a red plaid shirt. He was tall with grey hair. His eyes were green. Almost everyone in our family had green eyes except my mom, grandma, and I. My grandpa was normally quiet and passive.

"I'll show you to your room" he said. He picked up my suitcases and led me up the stairs.

"Here it is" he said, opening the door. "It was your mother's room when she was in high school. You can decorate it anyway you want and you've got your own balcony out here." Grandpa opened the double glass doors to a small balcony with a wrought iron table, chairs, and railing. I could feel the sea breeze and smell the ocean air. It made me sick.

"Let's go down stairs. You can unpack later" said Grandpa. I followed him out of the room and down the stairs. My mom and grandma were sitting in the kitchen, talking about me I'm sure.

"There she is" said Grandma, smiling. "We were just talking about you. Are you excited about starting school?"

"Oh yeah. I'm thrilled" I said, laying the sarcasm on thick. I never liked school. I tried when I was younger. But as I got older, it became increasingly difficult. The classes got harder, the teachers were tougher, and the kids were brutal. School seemed to go downhill when I reached high school. I started hanging out with the wrong crowd. By the time I reached 10th grade, I had been suspended for cutting class, ran away from home, arrested for underage drinking, and expelled for drug possession. I even spent a night in jail for vandalizing a cop car on a dare.

"Do you want to go with us to the boardwalk?" asked Mom.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because it's fun. Besides, this'll be the last time we'll get to do something together until Thanksgiving."

"Fine" I said.

Mom, Grandma, Grandpa, and I walked to the boardwalk together. It wasn't like how I remember it. Most of the shops were closed and boarded up. The restaurants were dingy and barely passing inspections. The rollercoaster creaked and groaned as the cars raced down the rusty tracks. The only ride that hadn't changed through the years was the merry go round.

"Let's go eat. I'm starving" said Mom. We sat outside at a little seafood restaurant. I guess they forgot I hate seafood. As they were eating, I got up and looked over the side of the boardwalk. The sun was beginning to set. The beach goers were disappearing. The ocean was growing darker and calmer.

"It's nice, isn't it?" said Mom as she walked up behind me.

"Yeah, I guess" I said.

"I think you're going to like it here. There's more to Santa Carla than you think" she said.

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean Santa Carla may prove to be more interesting than it appears to be" she said.

"Right" I said, rolling my eyes.

"You just wait and see. Once school starts I think you'll know what I'm talking about" said Mom.


	2. Chapter 2

I stood in front of my full length mirror, studying my new school uniform. The button down shirt and navy blue, pleated skirt had so much starch, I rustled when I walked. My knee high socks were itchy and kept falling down. My new shoes were so stiff; it felt like I had pieces of wood stuck to my feet.

I quickly pulled my brown hair into a ponytail, grabbed my backpack off my bed, and went downstairs. Grandma snapped a picture, temporarily blinding me as I tried to get down the stairs.

"You look great" said Grandma, snapping another picture.

"Grandma please. I'm going blind" I said.

Grandma set the camera down in the kitchen and continued to make breakfast. "I'm making you a big breakfast. I hope you're hungry."

"Actually I don't eat breakfast. I usually just get dressed and go" I said, walking towards the front door.

"Not so fast. Things are going to be different this year" said Grandpa, leading me towards the kitchen table. "You're going to sit down and eat breakfast every morning. Then either Grandma or I will drive you to school."

I sat down and worked my way through the mound of grease and syrup Grandma set before me. I felt so sick afterwards, I almost threw up.

Grandpa led me out the door to the car. Of course he would drive me to school in an ugly station wagon. The car was bright blue with wood siding.

"There are 2 rules about this car. 1. Never take it without our permission. 2. Always fill it up with gas when you take it out. Got it?"

"Got it" I said, climbing in the front seat. The interior of the car was just as bad as the outside. The seats were covered in mint green leather. Most of the seats were ripped. One was even missing a seatbelt. The dash was covered by a large sticker that was made to look like wood. The sticker was peeling off in some places and completely gone in others. The car was obviously in serious need of repair. Grandpa didn't need to worry about me taking this car.

The car started with a loud rumble, louder than most cars.

"I've been meaning to get the muffler fixed on this thing for a long time" said Grandpa as we pulled out of the driveway.

"I think you're really going to like your new school. Abby and Hannah go to the same school" said Grandpa. Abby and Hannah are my overachieving cousins. They have everything. They have perfect grades. They're popular. Even their boyfriends are perfect. My grades have never been anything to brag about. I've never been popular and the only boyfriend I've ever had lasted about 3 months. That was a year ago.

We finally arrived at school a few minutes later. It was a small, brick building with cement pillars and stairs in the front. Kids were everywhere. They were sitting at the base of the pillars, sitting on the stairs, standing in the grass next to the building. Everywhere. To make it worse, all the girls looked the same. They were miniature blond bombshells. I knew I was going to stick out like a sore thumb with my brown hair.

"Have a great day" said Grandpa as I got out of the car. I slammed the door behind me. It suddenly felt like I was standing on stage and someone had put a spotlight on me because everyone was staring at me. I could feel the sweat beginning to pour down my face. My hands were growing cold and clammy. I wanted to run away, but I didn't know where I to run.

Suddenly, I saw Abby and Hannah push through the crowd. They rushed to greet me.

"April!" yelled Abby.

"Abby! Hannah!" I yelled back like I was glad to see them.

"It's been so long since we've seen you" said Hannah, wrapping her arms around me.

"How's life at Grandma and Grandpa's?" asked Abby.

"Fine" I said.

"Good" said Abby.

"Come hangout with us" said Hannah, taking my hand. She led me to a group of people sitting at the base of the stairs. All of them looked like the group I had grown to hate at my old school. You know the type. The girls are cheerleaders. The boys are on the football team. They spend their time going to football games, driving around in their expensive cars, and making fun of other people. People like me.

"April, this is Marcia, Sarah, Jake, and Hunter. Guys, this is my cousin April. She's new here" said Hannah. They stared at me silently, looking me over before returning to their normal conversation.

"They're usually a lot nicer once you get to know them" said Abby.

"I bet" I said doubtfully.

"You should come sit with us at lunch. It'll be fun" said Hannah.

"Ok" I said, feigning my excitement.

The bell rang and everyone dispersed in different directions. I marched up the stairs and tried to find my first class. It wasn't an easy task even though it was a small building.

I walked into my first class to find that the teacher had already started. Every head in the room snapped up to look in my direction. The palms of my hands started sweating again.

"Who are you?" asked the teacher.

"April" I said.

The teacher picked up a stack of papers from her desk and flipped through it. She stopped halfway through the stack. "April Lewis?" she asked.

"Yep" I said.

"Take a seat in the back" she said, pointing to an empty desk in the far back corner. I practically ran to my seat, I was that uncomfortable.

"Hi, I'm Morgan" said the girl next to me. Morgan didn't look like the rest of the girls. She had bright green eyes with red hair. Freckles dotted both of her cheeks. She had a warm smile, which was a nice change from the cold stares I was getting. She wasn't skinny, but she wasn't fat. She was average size, unlike some of the other girls there. Some of them looked like they were about to pass out from lack of food, they were so skinny.

"Hey" I said, smiling.

The teacher turned around and 'shushed' us. We stayed quiet for the rest of the class. The class was nothing but pointless information that I know I will never us again.

"So what'd you think of your first class?" asked Morgan, catching up to me in the hallway.

"It was ok" I said.

"Don't worry" said Morgan. "Mrs. Smith is always like that. I believe she doesn't have a social life, so she wants us to suffer with her."

I smiled and said "it's ok. I can deal with difficult teachers."

"Where are you from?" asked Morgan.

"Kentucky" I said.

"Wow" said Morgan, "you're a long way from home."

"Yep" I said. Just as Morgan was about to say something, the bell rang.

"See you later" said Morgan, walking down the hall.

"Bye" I said, walking in the opposite direction.

I had English with Abby after that. She was so bouncy and bubbly during class, it made me sick. She knew the answer to every question. She was the first to volunteer when the teacher needed help. I don't have problem with being smart, but I did have a problem with being a know it all.

Soon, it was time for lunch. I stood in front of the entire high school, scanning the room for Morgan. Fortunately, I saw her waving at me from a far corner of the room. She was sitting at a crowded table, but she managed to save a space for me.

"How's your first day going?" she asked, pulling the chair out so I could sit down.

"Good" I said, sitting down.

"We're all going to the beach and boardwalk after school. It's a tradition for us to go after the first day of school. You wanna go?" she asked.

"Yeah sure" I said.

"Great. It'll be fun. There's tons of stuff to do at the boardwalk" said Morgan, smiling.

The remainder of the afternoon was like a slug, inching its way towards 3 o'clock. My feet tapped anxiously against the floor in my Spanish class as I eagerly waited for the bell to ring.

When the bell did ring, I jumped from my seat and practically ran towards my locker. Morgan and her friends were standing in front of my locker, waiting for me.

"I've got an extra bathing suit and clothes in my car" said Morgan. "It looks like we're about the same size."

She was right. We were almost the same size. She gave me a black bikini, pink board shorts, and a pink shirt to wear. Normally I wouldn't wear so much pink, but I didn't have a choice.

Before we left, I noted my grandma's car sitting in the car pool lane. I explained to her what happened, but she didn't seem too happy. She wanted me to go back to the house so she could keep a close eye on me.

"Grandma, I'll be fine. I promise I won't get into any trouble" I said as sweetly as I could. I really wasn't planning on getting into any trouble, but I needed grandma to believe me.

Grandma said "okay but be back before it gets dark and check in with me."

"Thanks Grandma!" I yelled as I ran back to Morgan and her friends. I got in Morgan's car and we sped off towards the beach with the rest of the crew in tow.

"Do you know how to surf?" asked Morgan.

"No. There aren't a lot of places to surf in Kentucky" I said. "Besides, I'm afraid of water."

"Really? A tough girl like you is afraid of water?" she asked, surprised. "We can change that."

"Great" I said.

As soon as we got there, Morgan unhooked her surf board from the roof of the car and ran towards the beach. She didn't even wait for the rest of her friends to show up.

I walked down to the beach and sat in the sand. The sand felt good between my toes. The last time I was at the beach, I was 6. I got sunburned because my dad forgot I was outside and kept me locked out of the condo most of the day. After the incident, Mom made sure he didn't come near me. He pretty much stayed away until last year. He decided he wanted to be more involved in my life. It turns out, involved meant ignoring me just about every time I was at his house, putting up with his damn kids and bitchy wife, and being called every other name under the sun when he does notice me.

"You're April, right?" came a voice from behind me. I turned around to see a tall, brown haired boy smiling at me.

"I'm Nate" he said, extending his hand.

I took it and asked "are you one of Morgan's friends?"

"Yeah. How come you're not out there?" he asked pointing to the beach.

"I just don't like the water" I said. "Why aren't you?"

"I wiped out and broke my board. My parents are making me pay for a new one" he said.

"Man, that sucks" I said.

"Hey!" yelled Morgan, running up to us. "Where is everyone?"

"They're on their way" he said.

"Well, we'll head up to the boardwalk in a while. You want to try surfing?" asked Morgan, pushing her board towards me.

"Alright" I said, taking the board. I followed Morgan into the water. Surprisingly, I wasn't as scared as I thought I would be. The water was warm and calm. Tiny fish swam quickly under my feet and the board. If I live in California long enough, I think I'll learn how relaxing the ocean can be.

"Ok, all you have to do is wait for a good wave, start paddling before the wave comes, then stand up once you're on the wave."

"You make it sound so easy" I said.

"It is. There's a good wave. Start paddling." I hastily started paddling towards the shore. Once I felt the wave under me, I tried to stand up. I was up for a few seconds before falling flat on my back in the water. Morgan swam over and helped me out of the water.

"You okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine" I said spitting up water.

"You did good for your first time" said Nate. Morgan left to retrieve the board from the water. It was heading towards a large group of people. I guess she didn't want anything to happen to it.

"You want to go walk on the boardwalk?" asked Nate. "It doesn't look like surfing is your thing."  
"Okay" I said. Nate and I walked side by side up to the boardwalk. There weren't a ton of people there this time.

"So how are you liking Cali so far?" asked Nate.

"It's different" I replied.

"Do you want to go on the Ferris wheel?" he asked.

"Sure" I said, smiling. It had been a long time since I had done anything that simple with a boy. Most of the boys I knew used me to get back at old girl friends. Sometimes I didn't mind, especially if I didn't like the girl, but it got old and tiresome. Plus, I was tired of people asking me out because they wanted revenge, not because they were attracted to me.

The Ferris wheel stopped at the top at the very top. The sun was beginning to set, so it made for a nice view. As I looked out over the beach, I could see Morgan and her friends gliding along the waves.

"It's so pretty" I said.

"Yeah, you can't find a sunset like that anywhere else" said Nate.

"What do you want to do after this?" I asked.

"We should probably go find Morgan."

"Yeah, probably" I said.

By the time we got off the Ferris wheel and found Morgan, the sun had set. The boardwalk was coming to life. People ventured out of their houses, condos, hotel rooms, wherever they were staying just so they could enjoy the nightlife on the boardwalk.

Nate and I sat in the sand while the others swam and surfed.

"Why are they surfing at night?" I asked.

"Because it's a rush. It's so different from surfing during the day. When you're surfing during the day, you mostly rely on sight. When you're surfing at night, it's all about feeling the wave" said Nate.

"I want to try" I said, standing up.

"I wouldn't do that. Only experienced surfers surf at night" said Nate, standing up to stop me.

"How hard can it be?" I asked, heading towards Morgan. She had just rode a wave into shore.

"Hey Morgan!" I called.

"Yeah?" she yelled back.

"Can I use your board?"

"What for?" she asked.

"I want to try surfing at night" I said, grabbing for the board. She quickly pulled it out of my reach.

"Whoa. Hold on. You want to try what?"

"Night surfing" I replied.

"Girl you must be crazy. You can't even stand up on a board during the day let alone at night" said Morgan.

"Watch me" I said, grabbing the board out of her hands. I marched into the water. The water had grown rougher since that afternoon. I didn't know how rough it had gotten till it was too late. I somehow managed to find a good wave and stand up on the board just fine. I was feeling pretty proud of myself until I fell off the board. The water was churning so violently, I thought I wouldn't see the surface again. I could hear my name being called, but it was so muffled and distant, I thought it was just part of a dream. I fought the water as hard as I could, kicking my legs and flailing my arms in attempt to get to the surface. To my disappointment, I kept sinking further and further down. I was growing tired. My eyes began to droop. It was as if the water was forcing my eyes to close. I closed my eyes and drifted closer to the bottom.

Suddenly, I felt a cold arm wrap around my waist. My back was against someone's chest. My face suddenly hit the cold air. I tried to open my eyes, but all I could see was a blurry face and a head full of short, dark, soaking wet hair. I tried to talk, but a faint, distance voice told me to be quiet. As we got closer to the shore, I could feel my body go limp. My rescuer picked me up and cradled me like a baby. They set me down gently on the beach and darted away before I could say thank you.

"Oh my god!" yelled Morgan as she ran towards me.

"Is she okay?" asked Nate.

"Is she breathing?" asked another.

I slowly came to and began coughing up water.

"Who was that?" I asked.

"I don't know" said Nate, "but I'm glad he was here."

"Me too" I said.


	3. Chapter 3

Nate stood me up and placed my arm over his shoulders.

"I'll take you home" said Nate once we got to his truck. He pulled a blanket out of the back seat and wrapped it around me.

"Thanks" I said.

"You look like you're freezing" said Nate as we both got in the truck. It was a small, green pickup truck with a John Deere sticker on the back.

"I am" I said "whoever pulled me out of the water was extremely cold."

"Really?" asked Nate as we drove away from the beach.

"Yeah, it was strange. It was like he had been underwater for a long time."

"That is weird. Which house is yours?" he asked, turning onto my street.

"It's the house on the left" I said, pointing to the house. The house was lit up like a Christmas tree. My grandparents must've been waiting up for me.

"Well" said Nate pulling into the driveway, "try not to drown in the bathtub. There's no strange people to save you."

I laughed and got out of the truck. To my surprise, Nate got out and walked me to the door. I've never had a guy do that before. Normally they dropped me at the curb and sped off in their beat up cars.

My grandma answered the door in her night gown and with curlers in her hair.  
"Thank God" she said once she saw me. "Charles she's here. Where the hell have you been? Why are you so wet?"

I explained to her everything that happened, including the stranger. She looked shocked and regretted the way she reacted earlier.

"Good Lord" she said, guiding me inside. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine" I said.

"I'll go make you some hot tea" said Grandpa as he shuffled toward the kitchen in his pajamas and house shoes.

"You poor thing. You've must've been so scared" said Grandma.

"We're all glad she's okay" said Nate.

"Who are you?" asked Grandma. Nate introduced himself and explained how we met earlier.

Grandpa came shuffling back to the living room with a coffee mug filled with steaming hot tea. I set it on the coffee table to let it cool a little. I wasn't really one for tea anyways.

"I should get going, but I'm glad you're safe" said Nate.

"Okay. Will I see you tomorrow?" I asked.

"Maybe" he said. I watched him until his car was out of the driveway.

"You haven't even been here one day and you've already got a boyfriend" said Grandma.

"He is not my boyfriend" I said, taking a sip of my tea.

"That can change. Now I want you to go straight upstairs, take a hot bath, and go straight to bed" said Grandma, pointing in the direction of the stairs.

I marched upstairs and went to the bathroom that was connected to my room. I turned the water and let the bathtub fill up. Right as I turned the water on, the phone in my room rang. It was my mother calling to see how my day was.

I was in the middle of explaining my school day when I noticed something in the tree outside my window. I walked to the window to get a closer look. There was a pale face with blond hair staring back at me. I immediately hung up, darted out of my room, and told my grandparents about it.

"Stay inside. I'll go take a look" said Grandpa. He went into his study to grab his handgun from a desk drawer that he kept locked at all times. He didn't like anyone using his gun.

He marched outside and slammed the door behind him. I could hear him yelling curses to whoever was in the tree. Things got quiet for a few moments before grandpa came back.

"Who was it?" asked Grandma.

Grandpa sat on the couch with a blank stare on his face.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Grandpa looked at me and said "don't worry. It's gone. Go back to bed."

I slowly walked back upstairs to the bathtub that was almost full now. I shut and locked the bathroom door behind me. I wasn't entirely sure that whatever was out there was gone. I knew that a locked door wouldn't stop someone from breaking in if they wanted to, but it gave me a sense of security.

I laid down in the hot water. It felt good after the kind of day I had experienced. I turned the water off and was lost in the silence of the bathroom.

I was putting my pajamas on when I heard voices from down the hall. My grandparent's bedroom was at the end of the hall. I quietly tiptoed down the dark hallway and leaned close to my grandparent's bedroom door.

"Whatever that was wasn't human" said Grandpa.

"What do you think it was?" asked Grandma.

"It moved too fast to be an animal. But it could fly."

"Tell me exactly what happened.

"I walked around to the side of the house where the tree is. I looked up and saw a large, black mass. It flew down right in front of me. I tried to shoot it but it wouldn't die. It ran off towards the beach. I was so scared, it took me a few seconds to move" confessed grandpa. I didn't understand what I was hearing. My grandpa had always been a rational person. He never believed in the supernatural. My grandparent's didn't even like Halloween. So to hear my grandpa say something like that was bewildering.

I walked quickly back to my room. I found it hard to sleep that night. A billion thoughts were running through my head at once. Who pulled me out of the water? What was outside my window? Why was it watching me? I couldn't find reasonable answers to any of the questions.

The next morning was a quiet, Friday morning. I got up, got dressed, ate breakfast, and went to school. Morgan seemed rather surprised to see me. She assumed that I would've stayed home."Well I'm glad you're here because I wanted to invite you to go camping with us this weekend" she said.

"Like sleep on the ground camping?" I asked.

"No. My parents own a summer camp about 2 hours outside of town. We'd be staying in some of the cabins. We can use whatever's there we just have to clean up when we're done" said Morgan.

"Is Nate coming?" I asked.

Morgan smiled and said "Yeah. Maybe you guys can get a cabin to yourselves."

"Shut up" I said, nudging her slightly.

School came and went. I managed to go the whole day without seeing my cousins. I assumed they were mad at me for not sitting with them at lunch the other day. They can get over it.

I met Nate, Morgan, 2 other guys, and another girl at Nate's truck.

"April, this is Sarah, Max, and Austin. They're going camping with us" said Morgan. I smiled and said hi. They were not part of the crowd that I saw at the beach yesterday.

"Nate do you want to take April home so she can get her stuff?" asked Morgan.

"Okay" said Nate as he unlocked the truck.

"Do you know how to get to the camp?" asked Morgan.

"Morgan, I've been there a thousand times. I know how to get there" said Nate, clearly annoyed.

"Okay, okay. I was just checking. We'll see you guys when you get there" said Morgan. She walked towards her car. Max, Austin, and Sarah followed closely behind. I began to think about what Morgan said about Nate and I having a cabin alone. Part of me wouldn't mind. The other part keeps saying we just met and it was wrong.

We pulled up to an empty house. To my surprise, my grandparents had left for the night. I quickly threw my things into my suitcase and scribbled a note for my grandparents, which I left on the kitchen counter.

"Took you long enough" said Nate.

"Shut up" I said.

"I hope your grandparents don't mind you being gone for a few days" said Nate.

"How long are we supposed to be gone?" I asked.

"Till Sunday" said Nate.

"Great" I said, "let's hope it's not like the beach all over again."

"Who knows? Maybe that strange dude will be there to save you again" said Nate.

There were a few minutes of silence between us. Nate stopped to get gas once we were outside of Santa Carla. An elderly man, probably around 70, offered to pump the gas and check under the hood. Nate ended up pumping the gas while the man looked under the hood.

"Where you guys heading?" he asked.

"Camp Brooke" said Nate.

"Watcha headin' up there for?" he asked.

"Some friends of ours own the place and they're letting us stay there" I explained.

"Man" said the guy, "you couldn't pay me enough to go up there by myself."

"Why's that?" I asked.

"When you've lived here as long as I have, you hear strange stories about people dying up there. They say its animal attacks but I think there's something up there that the authorities have never been able to catch" said the guy.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yeah. Legend has it 2 girls died up there in the 60s. The parents and police never found them. There've been about 6 or 7 other killings since. I'm surprised they're still using the place" said the guy.

"That's enough ghost stories for today" said Nate as he slammed the hood of the truck. The man was already done checking the engine.

"Come on April" said Nate as he opened my door. I said thank you to the man and got in the car. Nate sped out of the gas station, the breaks squealing as we made our way onto the highway.

"What's with you?" I asked.

"I just don't like ghost stories" he snapped. Nate was getting tense. He seemed distracted. I couldn't understand why.

About half an hour later, we arrived at Camp Brooke. A giant brown and white sign welcomed us. The camp was surrounded by trees. There was one car parked in front of what I assumed was the main building. The cabins were white with tin rook which I thought was strange for a camp.

We pulled up in front of the main building to find Morgan, Sarah, Max, and Austin sitting inside, waiting for us.

"What took you guys so long?" asked Morgan.

"We had to stop for gas" said Nate.

"So I guess you met George?" asked Max.

"George?" I asked.

"He owns the only gas station within 30 minutes of here" said Morgan, "he's not all there if you know what I mean."

"He told us some crazy ghost story about this place" I said. Max, Austin, and Sarah were cracking up, but Morgan and Nate stayed quiet.

"I'll take you on the grand tour" said Morgan, changing the subject. She grabbed a set of gold keys off the cork board and walked outside. I followed her outside and around the building to a large, white golf cart.

"Hop in" she said as she started the cart. I got in and we headed toward the lake. Morgan explained that the lake was a manmade lake and it was older than the camp.

"Did your family start the camp?"

"No my grandparents bought it in the 70s and fixed it up. The camp closed a year after the story about the 2 girls got out. Parents didn't want to send their kids here, so it lost a lot of money. That next season, the former owners up and left."

"So that story is true?" I asked.

Morgan sighed and said "yeah, to some extent. From what I've heard, the campers used to have evening rec every night after dinner. One little girl, Jane, wandered off. Her sister, Emmy, was a counselor and went looking for her. They never found them. My Grandpa was one of the cops who searched the camp. He saved a lot of the news paper articles about the disappearances in hopes that he might find another clue, but he never did" said Morgan.

"Nothing?" I asked.

"Nope. Not even a bone. It tore the town apart. It had been years since someone was killed. Now it happens all the time. I guess you could call us the murder capital of the world" she said.

Morgan continued to show me around the camp, including some of the cabins we could stay in. She showed me a cabin named "Emmy Hall." I assumed it was named after the girl that disappeared. She explained that the older counselors usually stayed in that house while the younger counselors stayed with the campers.

"Where do you stay?" I asked.

"I usually stay with my family at the house across the street if I'm not a counselor" she said, pointing in the direction of the road.

On our tour, Morgan also showed me the dining hall, lake and basketball courts. After the basketball courts, Morgan took me through the woods to a large clearing with a fire pit in the back.

"This is the rec field" she said.

"Is this the field you were talking about?" I asked.

"Yep, same one" she said.

I walked around the field for a while, but made sure to stay close to the golf cart. I knew nothing would happen to me, but stories like that scared me.

"We should be getting back" said Morgan, "I should get started on dinner."

I was about to turn for the golf cart when I thought I saw the outline of a small girl near the edge of the woods. I turned to face the woods, but there was nothing there. It was only grass and trees. I turned back to the golf cart and wrote it off as my imagination.

When we got back to the main building, Morgan started right away on dinner while the rest of us played board games that the previous counselors had left behind. We spent most of the night playing games and talking about everything under the sun. Eventually, it came time for us to go to bed. The girls and boys separated into different cabins for the night.

The next morning we got up bright and earlier, almost as if we were actually at summer camp. The next morning I awoke to the sound of birds chirping and splashing in the lake. I opened my eyes to find that

Sarah and Morgan were already up and in the lake. I pulled on some jean shorts, a green shirt, and flip flops. I found the guys in the lake and the girls sitting on the dock.

"She's up" said Morgan, smiling at me.

"Morning" I said, sitting next to her on the dock.

I slipped my flip flops off and put my feet in the water.

"We're going to go get lunch. You want to come?" asked Morgan.

"No, I think I'll stay here" I said.

"Alright. Suite yourself" said Morgan, standing up. Sarah, Max, and Austin followed.

"You're not going?" I asked Nate, who was floating nearby.

"Nope. I'm not hungry" he said. "You should come in. It feels good."

"I have bad luck with water, remember" I said.

"Well, I can help you with that" said Nate, pushing himself onto the dock.

"Don't" I said in a warning tone. I stood up as quickly as I could and backed away.

"What? I was just going to do this" said Nate. He charged towards me, grabbed me by the waist, and jumped in. For once, I wasn't afraid of drowning.

"You jerk" I said, splashing him in the face.

"You know you liked it" said Nate as he held me close in the water. There was obviously a spark between Nate and I. it was exciting because I haven't felt that spark in a long time.

We got out of the lake and made our way towards the main building. Morgan, Sarah, Austin, and Max were already back from getting lunch.

"Where have you been?" asked Morgan. "We've been waiting for you."

"Why?" asked Nate.

"We're going to ride the go cars down the road. You guys should come" said Sarah.

"Okay we'll go" I said, "just let me change." I quickly walked back to the cabin and changed into some jeans and a shirt.

We ended up walking to the go car place since it wasn't too far from the camp. The place obviously had go cars, but it also had mini golf, an arcade, restaurant, and bumper boats. I thought it was strange that a place like this was on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. It looked like the place had seen better days. The arcade and restaurant building was beat up. The go car track looked like it was about to collapse. The water from the bumper boats was green and murky. The only thing that was in good repair was the golf course.

Nate and I rode in the same car. He let me drive. We almost crashed a few times but we managed to survive. We ended up staying at the place till dinner time. The pizza was limp and greasy, but edible nonetheless. Nate and I walked home together while the others went ahead. We held hands and enjoyed each other's company. We were almost to the camp when it started to rain. Nate led me through the woods to an empty, unlocked cabin towards the back of the camp. Just as we got in, it started thundering and lightning.

"Wow" I said, looking out the window. "Looks like we're going to be here for a while."

"Is that a bad thing?" asked Nate, smiling at me.

"No" I said, smiling back.

I walked over to Nate and planted a kiss on his lips. He wrapped his arms around me tightly and kissed me back. My hands began to wander under his shirt and over his abs. his arms slowly released me. His hands traveled under my shirt and stopped at the under wire of my bra. He stopped for a moment and motioned towards a nearby bunk bed. I walked to the bed and laid down. I motioned for Nate to join me. He straddled me, took off his shirt, and began kissing me like he never stopped. I lifted my arms so he could take my shirt off. He did and threw it against the wall. I was fumbling with the button on his jeans when I heard a loud thump and tearing on the roof.

"What was that?" I asked.

"Probably just a branch" he said as he unhooked my bra and tossed it over his shoulder. He ran his hands over my bear chest and began to wander down to my jeans.

"Seriously" I said, pushing him off a little. "I know I heard something."

"It was probably just an animal" he said.

"On the roof?"

"Alright, I'll go check it out" he said. He got up and right as he was about to reach for his shirt, he stopped and looked towards the ceiling.

"What?" I asked.

"There's a hole in the middle of the ceiling. It's a big hole. I can see the sky and trees" he said.

"No way." I stood next to him and looked up. Sure enough, I could see the trees and feel the rain coming down.

"I'm going to see what's going on" said Nate as he put his shirt on.

"I'm going with you" I said. I put my bra and shirt back on. I followed Nate outside and gazed up at the roof. What I saw made me gasp. A boy with blond hair and a pale complexion was standing on the roof.

He smiled and evil grin and jumped down, landing an inch from my face. Nate grabbed my hand and jerked me away from the guy.

I ran as fast as I could toward Nate's truck, my heart pounding wildly. The boy jumped over me and landed in front of me again. I started running in the opposite direction, but I slipped on a patch of mud. I tried to stand up, but the mud kept me down. The boy practically jumped on top of me. I felt a sharp pain in my neck. Everything I knew and loved was before me: my family, friends, home in Kentucky, and Nate. Every faded and the feeling of being drained of life overcame me.


	4. Chapter 4

When I came to I was surrounded by a soft, cushiony fabric. I opened my eyes to see that I was in a dark box. I tried as hard as I could to push the lid off but it didn't budge. I kicked and screamed in hopes that someone would hear me. The blond haired boy slowly pushed the cover off the box. I quickly jumped out and backed away from the guy. I didn't know where I was. It appeared to be a cave covered with retro posters and furniture.

"Where am I?" I asked.

"Home" said the boy.

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice shaking.

"David" he replied, walking towards me.

"What happened?" I asked.

"You don't remember?" He asked, smiling. I shook my head no.

"I found you in the woods. Some grizzly animal attacked you. I brought you back here, gave you some medicine, and let you sleep here" said David.

"Why didn't you take me to the hospital?" I asked.

"Because they wouldn't be able to help you. You were so sick."

"Sick? I thought you said I was attacked? What's going on?"

Just then I heard yelling coming from outside the cave. 3 boys came walking in, roughhousing with each other.

"Haven't I told you not to draw so much attention to yourselves?" snapped David.

"Sorry" said a boy with long, blond hair. "We were just having fun. Who's the girl?"

"Dinner?" suggested another boy.

"Boys" said David, "meet your new sister April."

"Sister? We don't need a sister" said the blond haired boy.

"Paul, we talked about this. I thought it would be good if we added a girl to the family" said David.

"What's going on?" I asked.

The boys stopped suddenly and stared at the entrance of the cave. David grabbed me and we hid in a smaller cave off the main cave.

The cave filled with an aroma that I had never smelled before. It was sweet like a mix between candy and ice cream. It made my mouth water.

I could hear small footsteps, followed by larger ones entering the cave.

"Honey, look at this cave!" exclaimed a high pitched girl voice.

"Wow" said a low, male voice. "It looks like someone lives here."

David and I crept closer to the edge of the smaller cave but were careful to remain out of sight. There, in the middle of the cave, stood a dainty, teenage girl and a tough, burly guy who I assumed was her boyfriend.

"We're finally alone now" she said, planting a kiss on the guy's lips. As I watched them, my teeth began to sharpen. I was overpowered with a sudden urge to devour them. David and I slowly stepped out into the dim light of the larger cave. Paul and the other 2 slowly emerged from separate caves.

The boy and girl froze in fear.

"What's going on? Who are you?" asked the goy, grasping onto his girlfriend to keep her safe.

"What are you doing in our cave?" asked David.

"We didn't know this was your cave" said the girl.

"Guys, I think we should show them what happens to people who trespass" said David. Without a moments' hesitation, the boys pounced on the girl like a pack of wolves on a dead animal. They snarled and growled. The sound of the girls' sudden scream and the tearing of flesh rang like a cathedral bell throughout the cave. Within a few seconds, there was nothing but a thick silence. The girls' body lay mangled and bloody on the cave floor. Her eyes were so cold and lifeless; they would haunt me for the rest of my days.

Paul quickly grabbed the boy so he couldn't escape. The boy was shaking, crying, and fought back. He was no match for Paul.

"Let this be your first lesson in your new life. First, you go for the neck. Do not make a mess like these 3 did" said David, pointing towards the body then the other boys.

"Have at him" said David, smiling at me. My mind couldn't comprehend David's request, but my body did. I lunged toward him, soaring over the distance between us. My teeth sunk into his neck as far as they could go. His blood was sweet but thick and sticky. His breathing slowed. His face grew pale. He drew in one final, faint breath. His body went limp. Paul tossed his body to the side like he was throwing out the trash.

I wiped the blood off my lips and stared at the lifeless bodies on the floor. I still couldn't wrap my mind around the situation, but I knew that whatever David gave me when I was unconscious wasn't medicine.

"What's wrong with me?" I asked.

"You have a new life" said David. "You'll never grow old or die. You'll stay young and beautiful forever."

"I'm a vampire?" I asked in disbelief.

They stood completely still and silent.

I began to laugh. "Vampires aren't real. It's just a story people tell to scare little kids."

"How can you say that after what you've just done?" asked Paul.

"Who did this to me?" I asked, angry.

David smiled and said "I knew you were the right girl when I saw you on the boardwalk. You were with that boy."

"So you followed me home and watched me through my bedroom window?" I asked.

"I was waiting for the opportune moment. I didn't know it wouldn't come till the next day" said David.

"Yeah, excellent timing" I said, crossing my arms.

David stretched his arm out towards me but I pulled away. I walked hastily out of the cave into the thick, black night. I felt strangely at home when I was surrounded by the darkness. It embraced me like an old friend would. I walked up the beach to the nearest road. To my surprise, I could see the lights from the boardwalk shimmering in the distance. I wasn't too far from home.

It was on my journey home that I noticed the weather had no affect on me. I wasn't hot or cold. The wind wasn't warm or chilly. It was just there. I also notice that I didn't grow tired or uncomfortable as I neared the house. My feet felt just as they did when I left the cave. My calves weren't burning like they normally would. Even the loose rocks on the road didn't bother me.

When I got to the house, there were several cop cars parked in the street. I walked to the front door and rang the door bell. My grandma nearly had a heart attack when she saw me.

"Charles she's here!" yelled Grandma. She quickly pulled me into a hug. I was expecting her to squeeze me so hard I couldn't breathe, but then I remembered I didn't have to worry about that anymore.

"Honey you're freezing" said Grandma. She ran to the linen closet, pulled out a heavy blanket, and wrapped it tightly around me.

"Thank you so much officers" said Grandpa to the 4 cops that were standing in the living room.

"What happened to your neck?" asked a cop. My hand flew to the side of my neck. I ran my fingers over the small holes that David had left.

"I was attacked but someone found me and took me to the hospital" I said.

"You should've called or something. We've been worrying about you for days" said Grandpa.

"Days? What day is it?" I asked.

"It's Wednesday. You've been gone since Saturday" said Grandpa.

"Why don't you go upstairs and take a hot bath. I'm surprised you haven't frozen to death" said Grandma. I darted upstairs and shut my door. I closed the blinds for fear that David was outside, waiting and watching.

I threw myself down on my bed and waited for sleep to come, but it never did. I got up and turned the bath on to make my grandparents think I was taking a bath. I sat up all night, listening to the sounds of the house. With every creek, I thought David had found me. But he never came. Morning came so I knew I was safe for a few hours.

"April" said my grandma from behind my door. "Breakfast is ready. I think it would be a good idea if you stayed home today. You're probably traumatized by what you've been through."

"Thanks, Grandma. Just leave my breakfast on the kitchen table. I'm still kinda tired. I'll get it later."

"Okay. Your grandpa and I are going to run some errands. Will you be okay by yourself?"

"I'll be fine" I said.

"Do you need anything?" she asked.

"I'm fine, Grandma. Go!" I snapped.

"Alright" said Grandma before she walked away.

I laid back on my bed and to my surprise, I fell asleep within minutes. It was a sleep I had never experienced before. I felt like a bird, soaring over mountains, canyons, and oceans. It made me forget what happened the night before. For a brief second, I felt free.

I don't know exactly how long I was asleep, but when I woke up, I was dangling from the ceiling, surrounded by darkness.

I tried to push myself away from the ceiling, but I was stuck to it like glue. After a few strong pushes, I repelled from the ceiling and landed with a thud on the floor.

"April are you okay?" came a familiar voice from outside my room.

"Who's there?" I asked.

"It's Abby. Grandma sent me up here to check on you. Can I come in?" she asked.

"Give me a few seconds" I said. I quickly jumped up and flipped the lights on. I fixed my hair so that it covered the bite mark on my neck. When I went to put on some make up, I jumped back. My reflection had vanished. I saw nothing but a reflection of a seemingly empty bathroom. I swallowed hard. David couldn't be right. Vampires didn't exist.

I flipped the bathroom lights off and shut the door.

When I opened the door, a foul stench permeated the room. It was as if my room had turned into a landfill. Abby walked in and took a good look around the room. I could feel my teeth sharpening again, even though Abby smelled like garbage. I needed to learn how to control this new feature.

"I'm glad to see your okay. It must've been really scary" she said, looking me over a few times. I had been wearing the same clothes for a few days, so I could imagine how bad I looked. She on the other hand, looked like any popular girl should look. She was wearing a dress with black, strappy, high heels. Her hair was perfect. Her makeup was perfect. Everything about her was perfect. It wasn't fare. She was perfect by nature. I had to become a vampire.

I just smiled, being careful not to show my teeth. Abby just gave a week smile back.

"Do you want to come down to dinner?" she asked.

I nodded my head yes. Abbey led the way out of the room. I found the lights in the house to be extremely uncomfortable. It was as if the light from the lamps were burning holes in my eyes; it hurt that much.

I came downstairs to find that Uncle Stephen, Hannah and my youngest cousin, Jenna, were sitting in the kitchen, waiting for me so we could start dinner.

"I didn't know we were having a family reunion" I said as I sat down.

"It's your homecoming party" said Grandma.

"Great party" I said sarcastically.

"April, stop squinting like that. You'll get a headache" said Grandpa.

"My eyes hurt. Can you guys turn the lights down?" I asked.

Grandpa got up and dimmed the lights till they were almost off.

The rest of the family continued to talk about anything from what was on the news to what was going on in the family. At one time I might've found this news interesting and intriguing. However, I wasn't paying attention. I kept replaying the events of the last few days in my mind. They played out like a horror movie: a bunch of kids go to camp, girl gets abducted by a monster and nearly dies.

"April?" asked Grandma.

"What?" I asked, bringing myself back to the kitchen table.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine" I said.

The mindless chatter continued throughout the rest of dinner.

My mind went back to David and his friends. None of his friends were particularly attractive in my mind, but there was something that drew me to David. I found everything about David appealing; his smile, look, sent, everything.

Suddenly, I heard a loud rumbling coming from outside. A bright, white light lit up the room.

"What is that?" asked Jenna.

"I'll go look" I said. I jumped out of my seat and peaked outside the living room window. Behind the white light, I could see David and his friends sitting on their motorcycles, waiting for me.

"I'll see you later Grandma" I said as I pulled some shoes on. I left them sitting by the front door earlier.

"Where are you going? Whose outside?" she asked, panicked.

"It's just some friends from school. I'll be back later" I said walking out the door. David smiled when I came outside. Despite all that happened the night before, I couldn't help but smile back. He motioned for me to join him on his motorcycle. I quickly ran and hopped on the back.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"You'll see" said David.

We sped off down the road, kicking up dirt and loose rock as we went.

"Why'd you leave?" asked David.

"I was scared. I had to get out of there" I said.

"That's your home now" replied David. "You shouldn't be scared."

"I know. It just doesn't feel like home yet" I said.

"It will if you don't make a habit of running back to your grandparent's house" said David.

"How'd you know that was my grandparent's house?" I asked.

David smiled an evil grin. "Let's just say I've been there before. It hasn't changed much. You're grandparents haven't changed much either."

We arrived at the beach a few minutes later. There were tons of kids there.

"What are we doing here?" I asked.

"Consider this your second lesson. Places like schools, camps, and the beach. You know, places where there are going to be a lot of kids, make for good hunting grounds" said David as he dismounted the bike.

"Why is that?" I asked.

"Because kids are the most vulnerable and the least careful. Often times they don't pay attention to what's going on around them. They're too involved in their own worlds" said Paul.

"So we're here to hunt a bunch of kids?" I asked.

"Just watch" said David. There were kids everywhere. They were lying in the sand, floating in the water, playing soccer on the beach. Everywhere. The scent of their blood filled the air. It was sweet and tempting.

"You need to know how to lure people into our trap. Make up a story. Tell them there's a party somewhere, you're looking for a date, anything. But whatever you do, make sure you take them to a secluded area. We don't want to cause a disturbance" said David, "Duane why don't you go first. Show April how it's done."

Duane walked slowly towards a crowd of girls. He lingered just behind the group, acting shy and sweet. Sure enough, a small blonde bounced over to him and struck up a conversation. Marco, Paul, and David followed closely. I waited a while before sauntering towards a group of boys. A boy with short black hair looked my way. I know right then he would by my victim.

"Hey" said the guy.

"Hi" I said.

"I haven't seen you around here before. What's your name?" he asked.

"April. What's yours?" I asked.

"Mark" he said.

"Mark? That's such a nice name" I said, smiling sweetly at him. He smiled back.

"Listen, some of my friends are having a party. You wanna come?" I asked.

Mark smiled and said "sure."

Mark followed me back up to the road.

"So where are you from?" asked Mark.

"Kentucky. You?" I asked.

"Right here" he said.

"Sounds interesting" I said.

"It can be. There's some strange shit going on around here" said Mark.

I decided to play dumb. "Really? What kind of stuff?"

"Tons of people die around here. It's insane" he said. "So where's the party?"

"Just down the road" I said.

I led him to a dark, deserted beach. There was nothing but darkness and the sound of the waves crashing.

"Where is everyone?" he asked.

"They're on their way. Why don't we sit while we wait for them?"

"Okay" he said, sitting in the sand. I sat next to him.

"You're really pretty" he said, pushing my hair from my face.

"You're not so bad either" I said smiling a little and running my fingers through his hair. He began to kiss me slowly. He smelled so good, I couldn't control myself much longer. We broke apart for a moment so I could lay him down in the sand. He smiled widely, not knowing what was about to happen. I began kissing him again, slowly moving towards his neck. I sunk my teeth into his neck. He moaned and squirmed in pain. I quickly bit down harder and tore out a portion of his throat. He stopped squirming and moaning almost immediately. I stood up to examine my work. The boy lay motionless in a pool of blood and sand. Judging by his expression, he was in a great deal of pain during those final moments. I dragged his body to the water and tossed it into the ocean. I knew the body would wash up on shore, but they wouldn't find me.

I walked back to the other beach to find David and his friends waiting for me.

"How'd it go?" asked David.

"Great" I said, climbing onto the back of his bike.

"Perfect" he said, starting up the bike.


	5. Chapter 5

I spent the next several days with David, Marco, Paul, and Dwayne. Things were going perfect in the vampire world. I was sleeping all day and killing at night. However, things in the human world were falling apart. I stopped going to school. My grandparents threatened to send me back to Kentucky. My mom wanted to fly out and get me. David keeps telling me to let go of that life. Easier said than done.

The only part of my human world that seemed consistent was my friends. They didn't know exactly why I dropped out or why I don't go out during the day. I wanted them to know. I wasn't ashamed by it. However, David encouraged us to keep things tightly under wraps.

I was walking on the boardwalk with David one night when I saw Morgan and Nate waiting for one of the rides.

"I'll be right back" I said to David. He didn't seem to notice.

"April" said Morgan as I got closer. She smiled from ear to ear. Nate smiled too, but didn't say anything.

"I missed you" she said, hugging me. It was okay. I was starting to learn how to control myself around the people I loved. David didn't think there was any sense in learning self control. It's obvious he hasn't loved a human in a long time.

"What's up?" asked Morgan.

"Not much, just the same old stuff. What's up with you guys?" I asked.

"Nothing really. Things have been pretty quiet since you left" she said.

"I bet" I said.

"Where'd you go?" asked Nate suddenly.

"I thought I told you guys where I went" I said.

"Not really. What's been going on with you lately? We never get to see you anymore" said Nate.

"I know. I wish I could see you guys more too. Tell you what. Meet me here the same time tomorrow night. I'll explain everything" I said. I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to tell them, but I knew I needed to give them a better story.

"Who's that?" asked Nate, pointing to someone behind me. I turned to see David watching us. I knew what he was thinking. I wasn't going to kill them. There was no way I could.

"That's my new friend David" I said, turning back to Nate and Morgan.

"Looks like he's more than a friend" said Nate.

"I swear he's just a friend" I said.

"Sure he is" said Nate.

"Nate, don't be so mean. If she says he's just a friend, than he's just a friend" said Morgan.

"Thank you" I said, smiling.

Suddenly, I heard the sound of heavy boots behind me. I turned to see David walking towards me, smiling. He came up behind me and draped his arm over my shoulders.

"Come on April" he said, "it's time for dinner."

"I wasn't done talking to them" I said as David led me away.

"It's not good for you to be around those two, especially the girl" said David.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because I said so! If I find out you've been hanging around with them, you'll be in so much trouble, you won't even know what hit you!" he yelled.

David's sudden anger caught me off guard. I thought he was going to vamp out in the middle of the boardwalk.

"You can't tell me who to talk to and threaten me! You forget that I can do the same things as you!" I yelled.

"Not yet" said David, "it takes years of experience to be like me. You're still a newborn."

"I can take you" I said, wiggling free of David's grip. I stood as close to him as was possible. I was a few inches shorter than him, so I wasn't eye level with him, but I thought I was still intimidating.

"You're barking up the wrong tree, girl" said David in a low voice. "You don't want to mess with me. I will beat you."

David grabbed me by the arm and continued to lead me away from the boardwalk. If I was alive, there would've been a bruise on my arm; he was grabbing me that hard.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"It's time you went home for a while" he said.

"Home where?" I asked.

"Your grandparents' house. It may do you some good to stay there and away from me for a while. Clearly you've forgotten your manners" he said.

"What the hell did I do? Why can't I hang out with my friends every once in a while?" I asked, trying to shake off David's grip. He clamped harder down on my arm every time I tried to get away.

"You don't need them anymore!" he yelled, "You've got the gang and me!"

"I need to get out and see other people besides you four" I said as we reached the house. My grandma and grandpa were in the garage, watching us come up the drive. David quickly let go of my arm and grabbed my hand. My grandparents came to greet us in the driveway.

"Where have you been? It seems like we haven't seen you in days" said Grandma.

"Sorry Grandma, I've been busy" I said.

"Next time tell us when you're going out. Who's your friend?" asked Grandpa.

"This is David. David, these are my grandparents" I said. David dropped my hand to shake grandpa's hand and kiss grandma's hand. He was a mysterious character. He could be loving and compassionate one moment and sinister and downright angry the next. It confused me. I never knew which mood I was going to catch him in.

"I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow April" he said, leaning in to give me a kiss on the cheek. I leaned away. He has to be nice to me if he wants to kiss me.

"It was nice to meet you. Good night" he said to my grandparents.

"Come inside, April" said Grandma. She placed her hands on my shoulders and led me inside. I looked over my shoulder to see that David had disappeared completely from sight. However, I had a feeling he wasn't far.

"There's something about that boy I don't like" said Grandma. "I don't think you should see him anymore."

"He's harmless" I said as convincingly as I could.

"Well he better not be here when your mother is here next week" said Grandpa.

"When who is here?" I asked in disbelief.

"Your mother. She's coming next week. She's really worried about you. We're all worried" said Grandma.

"You don't have to worry. I'm fine" I said as I went upstairs. I slammed the door before my grandparents could retaliate. We've had this argument before. I knew my family was worried. After dropping out of school and being out all night, wouldn't you be too?

I fell asleep as soon as the sun came up. My grandma tried to get me to go out that day, but it was no use. Setting so much as a toe in the sunlight could kill me.

I awoke to a strangely quite household. I ventured downstairs to find that my grandparents had gone out to dinner with some friends for the night and they wouldn't be back until late.

I got dressed and went down to the boardwalk. Nate and Morgan were standing at the entrance, waiting for me.

"What took you so long?" asked Nate.

"Sorry. It took me a while to get dressed. Have you guys been waiting a long time?" I asked.

"No" said Morgan.

"What'd you have to tell us?" asked Nate

I looked around quickly. There were too many people where we were standing.

"Let's move down to the beach" I said.

Morgan, Nate, and I walked down to a quiet section of the beach. It was quiet. There was nothing but the sound of the waves crashing in the distance.

"You're not going to believe me" I said.

"Come on just tell u" said Morgan.

I took a deep breath and said "I'm a vampire."

Morgan and Nate stood in silence for a moment before cracking up.

"I'm serious" I said.

"Yeah and I'm the boogeyman. She's the bride of Frankenstein" said Nate, pointing to Morgan.

I was getting mad. I could feel my teeth sharpening. I didn't want to kill them. I just wanted to show them I was telling the truth.

A low growl escaped through my clenched teeth. I pounced on them. They hit the sand with a loud thud.

"Now do you think I'm kidding?" I hissed. They both nodded. I slowly got up and pulled them back to their feet.

"How did this happen?" asked Nate. I explained everything from meeting David at the camp to standing on that beach.

Suddenly, I heard a low, growling sound coming from behind me. I turned around to see David, Paul, Marco, and Dwayne.

"Look boys" said David, "April got us dinner."

"Leave them alone" I said.

"I told you to stay away from them. I told you something bad would happen if I caught you with them" said David.

The boys started circling them like vulchers.

"A little early to be hunting isn't it, David?" came a voice from behind us. I turned to see a boy emerging from the shadows of the boardwalk.

He lifted his head slowly to reveal a moon shaped scar under his right eye. His eyes were dark brown. Dark, curly hair was poking out from under a black bowler hat. He was young, probably around 18 or 19. He was wearing black pants, a white button down shirt, and black dress shoes. It looked like he just came from a party.

"Beat it Thomas. This doesn't concern you" said David.

"Oh but it does. This is my beach, remember? I told you to leave my beach alone" he said. David stared him for a minute before saying "lets go." The boys followed close behind, leaving us with our new friend.

"Thank you" I said.

"It's no problem. I'm Thomas" he said, smiling to reveal his razor sharp teeth.

"April" I said, showing him my teeth.

"Who are your friends?" he asked.

"Nate and Morgan" I said.

"Well welcome to my beach" said Thomas, spreading his arms open.

"You're beach?" asked Morgan.

"We vampires have territories. It's not exactly a law, but common knowledge that you don't hunt on other vampires territories" he said.

"So since we're in your territory, are you going to try to eat us?" asked Nate.

"No. I have more self control than most vampires" said Thomas.

"I didn't know there were other vampires here besides us" I said, referring to the gang and myself.

"Oh there's a good number of us around Santa Carla. Some new, some old" said Thomas.

"How long have you been here?" asked Morgan.

"A very, very long time. Decades before you were born, even before David was here" he said. That must've been a long time. I figured David was old, but I didn't know how old. He's never told me much about his past. I was curious as to what made David the way he is. I didn't know if it was just vampire nature or the way he works.

We followed Thomas under the boardwalk. There was a small door where the bottom of the boardwalk met the sand and concrete. Thomas brushed some of the sand away and pulled the door open. A faint orange-yellow glow emerged from the darkness behind the door.

"Come on" said Thomas, waving us over.

"This isn't a trap or anything, is it?" asked Nate.

"I promise it's not a trap. We're not going to eat you" said Thomas. They decided he seemed harmless enough and followed close behind.

We followed Thomas into his cavern. There was steep set of stairs right inside the door. The tiny, cramped stairway was lined with old pictures and posters of people long gone. A red carpet covered the narrow, concrete steps. Above us were tiny Christmas lights and cob webs.

The stairway opened into a large, rundown amphitheatre. Most of the seats were missing, but the stage was still standing. More posters and pictures lined the walls. The carpet stopped at the foot of the stage. There was a large chandelier over head that was lit with candles instead of electric lights.

"Man" said Morgan, climbing onto the stage, "I never knew this was down here."

"Most people don't" said Thomas. "They made a mistake building it so close to the beach. It eventually sunk. Now it's my home."

"All this for just one person?" asked Nate.

"There used to be more of us here, but they've all moved away" said Thomas.

"It looks a lot like our cave, except bigger" I said.

"Vampires are normally drawn to damp, dark, quiet places. It's just our nature" said Thomas.

"Is that where you sleep?" asked Morgan, pointing to a small archway that led to a tiny cave.

"Yes" said Thomas, walking towards the cave. I poked my head in to see it was covered with nothing but cobwebs and rotting rafters.

"This is my room. My guess is it used to be a janitors closet or something because it's too small to be a dressing room or bathroom" said Thomas. I was glad I had my comfy coffin. Hanging from rafters with nasty cobwebs wasn't my idea of luxury.

"How long have you known David?" I asked.

"Since before he was a vampire" said Thomas. "Our families were neighbors for a long time. We knew each other when we were kids."

"Do you know how he became a vampire?" I asked.

Thomas shook his head no. "He never even told me he was a vampire. I figured it out when a couple of years passed and he didn't look any different. "

"He scares me sometimes" I said, sitting on the stage.

"Yeah, he doesn't exactly make for great company. That's why I refuse to join his little group of friends. From what I understand, it's more like a cult than friends. That's why I'm here and not with them" said Thomas, sitting next to me on the stage.

"But he loves newborns. I don't think he'll hurt you as long as you follow his rules" said Thomas.

"Yeah, but I'm afraid because my family is coming into town next week. They don't know that I'm a vampire" I said. "I don't want anyone to get hurt."

"I think I can help their" said Morgan.

"How?" I asked.

"I've got uncles who live on the outskirts of town. Maybe they can help us" said Morgan.

"Are they cops?" asked Nate.

"Nope. They're vampire hunters. I thought they were crazy until now" said Morgan.

"Would it be safe for us to meet him?" I asked, pointing to Thomas and me.

"You really want me to come?" asked Thomas.

"Yeah. You seem to know a lot about David. Maybe you can help" I said.

Thomas smiled and said "okay. I'll go."

"It should be okay. We'll just explain what's going on before they kill you. We'll meet here same time tomorrow night" said Morgan.

"Okay" I said, standing up. I began to leave but Thomas stopped me.

"If you ever need to get away from David, you can always come here" he said, smiling. I couldn't help but smile. Even though I just met Thomas, I found very appealing and hard to resist.

"Thanks" I said.

I ran to catch up with Nate and Morgan.


	6. Chapter 6

I met Nate, Morgan, and Thomas under the boardwalk. I was surprised to see Nate. Thomas, Morgan, and I had legitimate reasons to be there, but I couldn't think of what would compel Nate to tag along on this adventure.

"I figured if we still want to be friends, I should at least get to know more about vampires" said Nate.

I smiled and hugged him. He slowly wrapped his arms around me and held me for a while. Nate made me feel like I was human again.

"Ready to go?" asked Morgan.

"Sure" I said, pulling away from Nate. We walked up to the parking lot where Morgan's car was waiting. Morgan and Nate sat in the front while Thomas and I sat in the back. Thomas was wearing black jeans, a navy blue t-shirt, black high top converse, a black bowler hat, and leather, fingerless gloves. It was a completely different look from last night, but perhaps that was good.

"I must warn you guys, my uncles are pretty serious about their work. Don't do anything to offend them, or they won't think twice about staking you" said Morgan.

"I've run across some pretty serious slayers before. I think we'll be okay" said Thomas.

"Alright but don't say I didn't warn you" said Morgan as we headed out of town. Morgan and Nate talked amongst themselves most of the trip. However, I discovered that Thomas and I could carry on a full conversation without saying a word. I had heard of vampires being telepathic before, but I didn't think I was one of those special vampires. David never let me explore my new abilities. His kept me on such a short leash, I was beginning to choke.

"David's pretty rough on you, isn't he?" asked Thomas.

"Yeah" I said.

"That's not fair. He should let you have fun every once in a while. You'll go crazy if you're cooped up in that cave" said Thomas.

'Tell me about it. I've tried explaining to him that I need to see other people besides him and his friends" I said. "He also expects me not to interact with my friends and family any more. He says I need to forget about such 'stupid human things'."

"Well, he is kinda right there. You do need to separate yourself from your human life, but he shouldn't expect you to do it so suddenly and smoothly. It takes time for some of us to get used to not being human" said Thomas.

"He doesn't understand" I said, "He probably doesn't even remember what it's like to be human."

"You're right. He probably doesn't" said Thomas.

"Do you remember when you were human?" I asked.

"I remember most of it" said Thomas. "I was grew up in Kansas. I don't exactly remember what year I was born in. It's been that long. There were 6 of us. 3 girls, 3 boys. All 8 of us built a little clapboard house when we got here. It wasn't much but it was home" he said.

"What'd you parents do?" I asked.

"My dad was a farmer. He grew things like corn, carrots, tomatoes, basically any vegetable he could get his hands on. My mother sometimes worked as a seamstress if we were living in a city with a lot of factories" he said. "I mostly worked on the farm."

"Do you remember when you became a vampire?" I asked.

"Oh yes. It was Christmas Eve. We had just come home from church. My wife Anna and I were going on a sleigh ride. We had made it a tradition the year we met. She loved sleigh rides in the snow. It was just the two of us. We left our children, Bo and Claire, with my parents. They were just babies at the time. We weren't even 5 minutes away from the house when it happened. The horses must've seen him first because they stopped dead in the middle of the road.

'He's a stranger' said Anna, 'we shouldn't help him.'

'Don't be ridiculous. It's Christmas Eve. We need to help him.' I jumped down from the carriage to help him. He was lying motionless in the middle of the road. I bent down next to him to see if he was breathing. He suddenly jumped up and attacked me. Anna panicked and rushed to help me. He killed her almost instantly. I don't remember much of the attack except for a sharp pain in my neck. He left me alone in the snow, reeling from what happened.

It took me ages to realize that my family was waiting for us to return. By that time, the horses had disappeared. I picked Anna up and carried her back to the house" he said.

"What happened?"

"There was nothing I could do. It was just Bo, Claire and I for a couple of years. I hunted at night after I had put the kids to bed."

"What happened to them?" I asked.

"Influenza took Claire before she was 10. My parents took Bo away from me. They noticed I wasn't getting older. They thought I was into voodoo or something. They didn't think Bo was safe with me. They moved away shortly after that. Many years later, I was sitting in a bar near the Kansas state line. There was a guy there who had obviously had too much to drink. He started going on and on about his dad and how he never grew up. He looked the same every day. His description sounded a lot like me. I left the bar before anyone noticed" he said.

"I'm sorry" I said.

"It's all part of being a vampire. You have to learn how to say goodbye to the ones you love because you're going to outlive them" he said.

"Why are you two so quiet back there?" asked Morgan, glancing at us through the rearview mirror.

"We're just tired" I said, "how much longer?"

"We're here" said Morgan, turning down a dirt driveway. A few small, white trailers came into view. They were surrounded by crucifixes, strands of garlic and wooden stakes.

"Great" said Thomas.

"What is that awful smell?" I asked, covering my nose.

"Garlic" replied Thomas as he covered his own nose.

We climbed out of the car. Thomas and I stopped before we reached the front door. An unseen force kept us from getting closer. I don't know if it was the crucifixes, smell of garlic or being stabbed by a sharp stake.

"We'll wait here" said Thomas, leaning against the car.

Morgan knocked on the tin door. Shadows moved hurriedly behind the curtains in the windows. Someone peeked through the curtains on the front window before opening the door.

"Morgan?" asked the guy who answered the door. "What are you doing out here so late?"

"Good to see you too Uncle Eddie" she said.

"Please don't call me Uncle Eddie. My name is not Eddie. It's Edgar" said Edgar.

"Eddie, Edgar. They mean the same thing" said Morgan.

"Why are you here?" he asked.

"I have to talk to you and Uncle Alan. You got a few minutes?" she asked.

"Sure, come in" he said, opening the door wider.

"I can't. You should probably come out here" she said.

"This a trick?" he asked.

"Would I trick you?" she asked.

He paused for a moment before saying "guess not. Alan! Get out here!"

"What?" came a voice from inside the trailer. Another guy appeared in the doorway.

"Morgan is here. She needs help" said Edgar.

"There's someone I want you to meet but you have to come outside. She can't come inside" she said.

"Vampire?" asked Alan. Morgan nodded her head yes. Edgar and Alan exchanged a few hesitant glances before following Morgan outside.

"This is April" said Morgan.

"You want us to stake her?" asked Edgar.

"No. Don't stake her. April needs help. Tell them April" said Morgan, stepping back so I could get a better view of the guys standing before me. Both were standing rather defensively. They were a few feet away with their arms folded across their chests.

I began to explain to them everything that happened in the past couple of days, including David's sudden mood swing and my mom coming to town.

"So let me get this straight. You're worried that David will do something to your family because of his attitude?" asked Edgar.

"Yes" I said.

"How do we fit into that?" asked Alan.

"Protection. I want you guys to help protect my family just for the week. I'll pay whatever you want, just keep the vampires away" I said.

"Promise not to kill us?" asked Edgar.

"Promise" I said. "Do we have a deal?"

"Deal" said Edgar and Alan. I shook their hands.

"You a bloodsucker too?" asked Edgar, looking at Thomas.

"Yep, but I'm just along for the ride" said Thomas.

"I've seen you before. You're the vamp that lives under the boardwalk" said Alan.

"Yep, that's me" said Thomas smiling.

"Let's get something straight" said Edgar. "We'll protect your family, but you'll have to help too. We can hold off maybe two or three vamps at a time if needed, but it is an advantage if you could help us."

"Done" I said.

"Let us know when your family gets here. We'll take it from there" said Edgar, walking back inside. Alan followed close behind. I guess that conversation was over.

Morgan dropped me off at the beach where the cave is. I knew David told me to go home for a while but I needed to make sure he wasn't in one of his moods. Mom was coming, so he needed to get over whatever funk he was in.

When I walked into the cave, I saw David sitting in the middle with his friends surrounding him. Something wasn't right.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"April, I was hoping you'd come back tonight" said David, "I have a surprise for you. I think you're going to like them."

"Like what?" I asked.

David whistled. Two little kids, a boy and a girl, came skipping into the cave. They looked to be around 6 or 7. They both had strawberry blond hair and freckles.

"This is Savannah and Silas" said David, placing his hands on their shoulders.

"What is this? What have you done?" I asked, shocked.

"You can never have children of your own. I decided to give you an early Christmas present. Kids" said David, directing his attention to the kids "go meet your new mommy."

"Mommy!" yelled both of the kids as they ran towards me. They wrapped their little arms around my waist and refused to let go. It was then that I noticed their tiny fangs and tiny holes in their necks.

"You turned them into vampires? Have you lost your mind?" I asked.

"I'm doing you a favor" said David. "Most people would be happy."

"I'm not most people. How could you do this to these kids? What about their real parents?"

"Let's just say their parents are at ease" said David. Everyone in the cave laughed.

"You're a monster" I said.

"Well, I am a vampire" he said, laughing harder.

David stood up and began circling the kids and I. I didn't know them, but out of instinct, I drew them closer to me.

"Think about it" said David in a low tone."We'd be the perfect family. The kids will never grow up and we'll never die."

"Wonderful" I said in fake amusement. "The sun is about to come out. I'm going to bed."

"Take the kids with you" said David.

"It's time for bed kids" I said, leading them away from the group. David got Savannah a pretty, white coffin with pink lining. He got Silas a nice, brown coffin with blood red fabric. Both of the coffins were lying next to mine.

"Mommy" said Savannah.

"What?"

"Why does Daddy make us sleep in boxes?" she asked.

"To keep you safe. He doesn't want anything to happen to you while you're asleep" I replied.

"Will you tuck us in? Our old mommy and daddy used to tuck us in" said Silas.

I lifted Silas and Savannah into their coffins.

"Where's our old mommy and daddy?" asked Silas before I closed his coffin. I didn't know what to say. I couldn't flat out tell them they had been eaten. David would tell them, but I can't. They wouldn't understand.

"They're sleeping" I said.

"When are they gonna wake up? I want to go home" said Silas.

"They're not going to wake up. You are home. Don't worry. You're going to love it here" I said, forcing a fake smile.

Silas smiled back. I pushed the lids over their coffins and let them experience a sleep no humans could possibly imagine.

Instead of going to sleep, I joined the gang back in the cave.

"You pull another stunt like that and I'm leaving" I said to David.

"Where would you go? To Thomas?" suggested David.

"At least he respects me. You just got these kids so I would stay here" I said.

"You wouldn't leave" said David, "you're too afraid. You wouldn't be able to survive on your own. You'd be lost."

"You treat me like I'm your baby! I'm not! Why don't you let me do what I want to do?' I asked. David glared then smiled. He stood up slowly and circled me.

"You're so pretty when you're mad" he said, running his fingers through my hair. If I had blood, I'd get chills.

"But I really wish you wouldn't get so mad at me. I'm only trying to help" said David. He drew me closer to him and slowly wrapped his arms around my waist.

"Besides" he said, kissing me on the lips, "you know you like the attention." Repulsed by the last comment, I pushed him away.

"You think that's all I want?" I snapped. "All I want is for you to leave me alone! Stop trying to control me, seduce me, and trying to get me to stay here, okay? I've already made up my mind. I'm staying in Santa Carla so you don't have to worry."

David wrinkled his nose and said "maybe you should get out of here when the sun goes down. Take the kids with you."

I stormed off to my coffin and slammed the lid down. It was equivalent to going to my room and slamming the door. I found it difficult to sleep that day. I kept waking up to the sound of tiny feet running around outside. I pushed the lid off to see Savannah standing over me.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"I'm scared. Can I sleep with you? Daddy won't let me sleep with him" she said.

"Okay" I said, scooting over. "Get in."

She smiled and climbed in. She fell asleep almost instantly, clutching a teddy bear she found somewhere amongst the depths of the cave. I fell asleep after a couple of minutes.


	7. Chapter 7

"What are we doing tonight, Mommy?" asked Savannah. She was sitting in David's chair, swinging her legs back and forth.

"We're going to see my friend Thomas" I said, running a brush through my hair. I thought my hair would've changed shape when I became a vampire, but it stayed as normal and difficult as it was before.

"Who's Thomas?" asked Silas, who was sitting on the floor of the cave, playing with a toy train David got him a few nights ago.

"He's another vampire" I said, spraying myself with perfume. "Come on, we need to get going."

"Piggy back ride!" shouted Savannah, jumping up from the chair. She jumped so high, she nearly knocked the chair over.

"Climb on" I said, turning my back to her. She jumped on and wrapped her arms tightly around my neck. Silas skipped ahead of us. Every night I made it a point to leave the cave before David came back. I wanted to take the kids and leave him, but there was an unnatural force that bound us to him. It was a strange but strong feeling.

We reached Thomas' front door in record time. I knocked once and the door creaked open. Silas grabbed my hand and held it tightly. The walk way to the theatre was dark. The lanterns hanging from the ceiling were extinguished.

Like the walk way, the theatre was also dark. One lonely light filled the room where Thomas slept. Something was wrong. Thomas' silhouette appeared in the door way.

"Who's there?" he asked.

"It's me. It's April" I said. Thomas grabbed the lantern from his room and walked in the direction of my voice. He held the lantern in front of my face.

"Who are they?" he asked, pointing the light to Silas and Savannah.

I explained to him everything that happened since I last saw him. He seemed disgusted when I said they were small vampires.

"Its wrong" said Thomas as he watched them chase each other around the room. "He can't do this to you. He didn't have any right to change those kids and make you there new mother."

"I just don't know what I'm going to do with them when Mom comes tomorrow. I can't go from having no kids to having two 6 year olds" I said.

"They can stay here. I'll take care of them" said Thomas.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yeah. It gets lonely around here. It'd be nice to have company. Besides, it gives you an excuse to come see me" he said, smiling.

I smiled and said "I don't need an excuse to see you."

Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door. The knock echoed throughout the theatre. The kids stopped playing and ran to hide behind Thomas and me.

"Stay here" said Thomas as he crept slowly and quietly. The loud knocking turned into barbaric banging.

"Thomas!" came David's voice from the other side of the door. Thomas motioned for us to hide in his bedroom.

Thomas calmly opened the door and said "David, what brings you to my humble abode?"

"Is April here?" asked David.

"April? April who?" asked Thomas.

"Don't act so dumb. You know who I'm talking about. The girl you pulled from the water. She'd have 2 little redheaded runts in tow" said David.

"Now that you mention it, I have seen a girl like that around. Try the boardwalk" said Thomas.

"Need I remind you that she and the rugrats are mine. Stay away from them. I have no problem adding another scar to that pretty little face of yours" threatened David.

"You can threaten all you want, but remember that I feel no pain so your physical threats have no effect on me. Now, if you don't mind, I've got work to do and you need to leave."

I didn't hear David leave, but I heard the door shut tight behind Thomas.

We crept out of the room to where Thomas was standing.

"You were the one who pulled me from the water?" I asked.

Thomas motioned for me to join him on the stage.

"I can't explain it" he said, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me closer to him. "Normally, I would let them die. When you're human, you don't realize how lucky you are to die. But when I saw you, I knew you weren't supposed to die. Something was going to happen to you that would change your life completely and I couldn't let you miss that" he said.

"How did you know?" I asked.

"It was just a feeling" he said.

"You were right" I said, placing my head on his shoulder.

"You want to go hunting?" he asked.

"With the kids?" I asked.

"Why not? They have to learn sometime" he said.

"I don't think that's a good idea" I said.

"Do you want them to die?" he asked.

"No" I replied.

"Then they have to come with us" said Thomas. He started walking behind the stage, motioning for me and the kids to join him before he disappeared.

"Savannah! Silas! Let's go!" I yelled. The kids stopped playing and ran towards the stage.

"Where are we going?" asked Silas as he climbed onto the stage.

"We're going on an adventure" I said, "come on."

Savannah and Silas followed close behind me. The space behind the stage was dark and empty. There was an old, rusty ladder that led to a covered hole in the ceiling. Thomas was already halfway up the ladder when we started climbing. I let the kids go first. Thomas slid the cover off the hole. He helped us out one by one. We were standing in the middle of a deserted, closed off parking lot. Most of the buildings surrounding the parking lot were boarded up and shut down.

"What happened here?" I asked.

"Let's just say we vampires have made our mark around here" said Thomas.

We began strolling amongst the abandoned buildings.

"There is one thing David and I have in common" said Thomas.

"What's that?" I asked.

"We hunt the same way. We like to lure humans, especially humans of the opposite sex, back to our home base" said Thomas. "I guess you could say we like to seduce them."

"What about the kids?" I asked.

Thomas smiled and said "that's easy. They have a certain charm we don't have. All they have to do is ask someone to help them find there lost puppy and they're set." He was right. Thomas and I may have the looks, but the kids had an innocence that was irresistible.

We walked into a bar close to the boardwalk. It was lit with neon signs and filled with smoke. Anyone in that place would make a perfect victim because they were so drunk, they wouldn't understand what was happening.

Thomas and the kids went to work right away. I took my time. I walked around the room, studying each human I came into contact with. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going because I ran into a guy and knocked his drinks out of his hands.

"I am so sorry" I said as the bottles hit the floor. The glass shattered and flew in different directions.

"It's my fault. I'm a klutz" he said.

"Well at least you're cute. That makes up for being clumsy" I said. I helped the guy clean up the glass.

He laughed and said "I'm Charlie. What's your name?"

"April. I just moved here" I said.

Charlie smiled and said "you're beautiful. You want to go back to my place for a while?"

I smiled and said "I've got a better idea."

I took Charlie by the hand and led him out of the bar. As we were walking out, I saw Savannah crying to a woman by the doorway. She was telling the woman that she got separated from her mom while on the boardwalk. I couldn't help but feel proud of her for fabricating such an elaborate story.

"Poor kid" said Charlie, "you think we should help?"

"Naw, she'll be alright" I said. Charlie smiled and wrapped his arm around my waist.

"So where are we going?" he asked.

"This way" I said, leading him towards the beach. We found an abandoned cabana close to the shore line. There was a single fold out chair that folded out like a bed.

He lied down on the chair and pulled me on top of him. I helped pull his leather jacket off and tossed it to the other side of the cabana.

Charlie pulled me closer so he could kiss me. He smelled like alcohol. It wasn't the best smell, but I could handle it. I could feel his heart racing as I ran my hands under his shirt.

"Your hands are so cold" he said between kisses.

"I'm always cold" I said as I slipped his shirt off and tossed it over where his jacket lay. I had no intentions of sleeping with any one that night. I simply removed his jacket and shirt so I could get a better shot at his neck. Clothes can get in the way.

I slowly started a trail of kisses from his mouth to his neck. He was so distracted by the kisses, he hadn't noticed that I pinned his arms to the sides of the chair to hold him down. I sank my teeth deep into his neck. He started thrashing almost instantly. The screams came soon after. In an attempt to silence the noise, I tore a chunk of his throat out and spit it out. He was still kicking, but at least he was quiet.

I sucked the blood out until his arms and legs went limp. I stripped him of his clothes before devouring the rest of the body.

I buried the bones in the sand, gathered up the clothes, and walked up the beach. As I was walking back to the bar, I saw Thomas walking in the same direction, wiping the blood from his mouth.

"How'd you do?" he asked when he saw me.

"Pretty good. You?" I asked.

"I got two of 'em" he said with pride.

"I got you something" I said. I held out the clothes for him to see. He studied them for a minute before slipping the jacket on.

"How does it look?" he asked.

"Turn around" I said.

He spun around slowly, stretching his arms out. The jacket fit him perfectly.

Thomas suddenly stopped spinning. He stood completely still, listening to the night air.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Shh" hissed Thomas, placing his finger over his lips. He paced up and down the street, keeping his eyes focused on the sky.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"We need to leave" said Thomas. He rushed back to me, wrapped his arms around me, and guided me back to the bar. I glanced over my shoulder and for a moment, I thought I saw a flash of blond hair in the distance. I drew closer to Thomas.

When we reached the bar, I could see Savannah and Silas standing outside with an older man. He was balding, wearing a button down shirt, black pants, and black shoes. He looked angry. His face was wrinkled as he looked around furiously.

"Mommy!" yelled Silas, running to me with arms open. I scooped him up and held him tight.

"These your kids?" asked the man in a gruff voice.

"Yes sir" said Thomas, taking Savannah by the hand.

"Keep 'em out of my bar. Bars ain't a place for kids. I see them in here again, I'll call the cops" said the guy, waging his finger at us.

"We're sorry sir. We'll keep them out" I said.

The man grunted and said "kids raising kids. What's this world coming to?"

"Come on guys" I said to the kids, "let's get out of here."

We went back to Thomas' theatre.

"I should probably go" I said, "I need to go to my grandparents' house."

"Will I see you tomorrow?" he asked.

"Of course. I want you to meet my family" I said.

"I'll be at your house at 7" he said.

"Okay" I said. I sighed as I watched Savannah and Silas scamper down the stairs. They seemed happier with Thomas.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm just worried. What if David comes after them?" I asked.

Thomas smiled and said "don't worry. I'll protect them. David may be tough, but he can't break me."


	8. Chapter 8

I stood in front of the mirror at my grandparents' house. I wore my hair down and curled it to cover up the bite mark. I wore a purple, strapless dress that had black netting underneath. I normally wouldn't be so dressed up for Mom, but I wanted to look nice for a change.

I heard the front door creek open downstairs.

"Where's April?" came my mother's voice. I pulled on some black, flat shoes and walked down stairs.

"Mom" I said, sneaking up behind her. She almost cried when she saw me. She's never been away from me for so long.

"You look great" said Mom as she pulled me in for a hug. She didn't let go for almost a whole minute.

"Well turn around, let me get a good look at you" said Mom. I spun around slowly. She studied me for a few minutes before smiling and saying, "I missed you so much."

Just then, the door bell rang. I raced past my grandparents to see who it was. I peeked through the curtain to see Thomas, wearing a nice white, button down shirt and black pants. He was holding a small bouquet of colorful flowers. The kids were well dressed and standing patiently by his side.

I quickly unlocked the door and let them in.

"Who is this?" asked Mom.

"Mom, I have someone I want you to meet. This is my boyfriend, Thomas" I said.

"It's wonderful to finally meet you" said Thomas, handing my mom the bouquet.

"Thank you. And who are they?" she asked, referring to the kids.

"This is my sister, Savannah, and my brother, Silas. They adore April" said Thomas.

"How precious" said Mom, "do you want to join us for dinner?"

"If it's alright with April" said Thomas.

"Of course" I said.

"Good" said Mom. "I'll go get my purse. We're going out to this nice restaurant on the boardwalk."

"Is it okay if we meet you guys down there?" I asked.

Mom looked puzzled. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm great. We just like walking by ourselves" I said.

Mom grinned and winked. "Gotcha. We'll meet you t the Blue Lagoon. You know that blue building next to the ferris wheel."

"I know which one you're talking about. We'll be right there" I said.

"Take your time" said Mom as she left with my grandparents.

"What's up?" asked Thomas.

"The Frogg brothers will be here any minute. I needed to get my mom and grandparents out of the house. They said something about prepping the house" I said.

"What the hell does that mean?" asked Thomas.

"I don't know but I told them whatever they do, it must be inconspicuous. My family can't know they're in trouble" I said, peeking out the window. No sign of the Frogg brothers yet.

"You haven't told them?" asked Thomas.

"No. They don't even know I'm a vampire" I said.

"Why haven't you told them? They have a right to know" said Thomas.

"Did you tell your family?" I asked.

"They were never in danger" said Thomas.

Soon I heard a car pull up in the driveway. I peeked out the window to see a red, beat up pickup truck in the driveway. The bed of the truck was filled with jagged metal, stakes, and a crate of garlic cloves. Edgar and Alan jumped out of the truck dressed in full hunting gear. They were armed with more stakes, some type of machine gun, and water bottles filled with what I assumed to be holy water.

A rough knock echoed throughout the house. I slowly pulled the door open. Edgar and Alan rushed in without so much as a hello.

"Nice house" said Edgar in a rough voice.

"We don't have much time" I said. "My family is waiting for us."

"Right" said Alan. "Let's get started."

They started bringing in all sorts of guns and sharp objects.

"We need to put some of the bigger artillery upstairs" said Edgar.

"What bigger artillery? I thought I told you to keep things inconspicuous" I said.

"These are absolutely necessary" said Alan he gestured to two large covered objects resting in the bed of the truck.

"There's my room and an empty bedroom upstairs. Is that good enough?" I asked.

"Perfect" they said at the same time. They raced back outside to bring things from the truck. Finally, they pulled the two larger objects from the truck

"Stakegun" said Alan, unveiling the first object. It looked like a regular gun, except the barrel and chamber were large enough to hold metal stakes.

"When we're not hunting, we spend our time inventing new gear" said Alan. "It took us almost a year to build a gun that works. This one is near perfect. We still have a few kinks to work out. Aim right for the heart. Instant death. It's a bitch if you miss."

"What if I miss?" I asked.

"Don't miss" said Alan.

Edgar pulled in some contraption on wheels. He pulled the sheet off to reveal a large machine gun invention.

"What's that?" asked Thomas.

"This is the Vamp 1000. It's the ultimate vampire hunting gun. It can shoot every imaginable defense at a vampire. Stakes, salt, even crosses" said Edgar.

"Why would you need a gun to do that?" asked Thomas.

"This can throw anything faster than the average human can. When you're up against a vampire, speed is a necessity" said Alan.

"Whatever. I'll show you the empty room" I said. Thomas helped Edgar carry the gun up the stairs the room was in the middle of the hallway. The paint was chipping off the door. The handle was loose. The door creaked open like the spine of a new book.

The room was filled with furniture like a bed, dresser, and vanity. Clothes and papers were scattered on the floor, making it difficult to walk. A thick layer of dust covered every surface. The light fixture in the ceiling was shattered. The only window in the room was boarded up. I knew my aunt Jillian lived in this room before she went insane, but I never understood why my grandparents left it as is. I also never fully understood what happened to my aunt. My grandparents never talked about it and mom and Uncle Stephen claimed she was crazy.

"What a mess. No wonder it's empty" said Edgar.

"Just put the gun in the corner" I said. he pushed the gun through the debris to the corner of the room. in a room filled with clutter, it looked in place.

Edgar and I walked down stairs to join the group. They were stand by the door, waiting.

"We should be going. Where will you guys be?" I asked.

"We'll be patrolling the outside of the house" said Alan.

"Good" I said, "we'll be back soon."

Edgar and Alan followed us outside but we parted ways in the driveway.

"You think this'll work?" asked Thomas.

"I hope so. I don't even know if anything will happen. Id' rather be safe than sorry" I said.

"I hope you're right" said Thomas, "so, any topics I should avoid with your mother?"

"I laughed and said "why? Nervous?"

Thomas smirked and said "a little."

"She's flexible. I don't think she'll be offended" I said.

We reached the restaurant shortly. My family was sitting outside by a dance floor decorated by white Christmas lights..

Thomas and I sat across from my mom. The kids sat across from my grandparents.

"So how old are you Thomas?" asked Mom.

"I'm 18" he replied.

"How'd you meet April?" asked Mom.

"It was kind of an accident really. She was drowning and I saved her. I live on the beach so I'm constantly walking on the beach at night."

"What were you doing in the ocean at night?" asked Mom.

"I was out with some friends and they wanted me to swim with them" I said.

"Honestly child you're giving me grey hair" said Mom.

I laughed and said "You have no idea."

"I want to know what happened to that David fellow we met" said Grandpa.

"David? David who?" asked Mom.

"He was just a friend" I said.

"Looked like more than just a friend to me" said Grandma.

"Mom, where'd you get that bracelet?" I asked, looking at the tiny, silver, charm bracelet wrapped around her wrist.

"My boyfriend Kyle gave it to me. He wanted to meet you but he had to work."

"When were you going to tell me about him?" I asked.

"Right now" said Mom.

"How'd you meet him?" asked Thomas.

"It's very silly actually. I ws going white water rafting with one of my friends right after you moved out, April. He was our tour guide. I was getting an ore when I turned around and smacked him in the face."

Thomas and the kids laughed. I didn't think it was funny. I didn't like my mom having a boyfriend. I've never liked her dating. She's always picked losers. Kevin probably wasn't any different.

"Does he have kids?" I asked, hoping the answer was no.

"Yes, he has 2 girls. Anna is 10 and Emmy is 5. You'd love them. They're so cute" said Mom.

Thomas reached across my lap and grabbed my hand to keep me from exploding. He laced his fingers between mine. It did help to ease some of the anger. He rubbed his thumb against mine, making slow circles.

Finally the waiter came to our table to take our orders. It'll be strange to have food again. I've somehow managed to skip meals with my grandparents.

Suddenly classical music started playing over the loud speakers. An elderly couple moved slowly and gracefully across the dance floor.

"You want to dance?" asked Thomas.

"I don't know how" I said.

"It's easy" he said. He led me to the middle of the dance floor.

"Put your hand on my shoulder" said Thomas. I placed my hand on his shoulder.

"Now let me lead you" he said. He swept me across the dance floor. It was almost like prom. I got invited to prom last year, but I never made it past the backseat of my date's car.

I kept my eyes focused on the old couple. They moved at a different pace than the other dancers. The lady rested her head on the man's shoulder, closed her eyes, and smiled. The man kissed her head and swayed slowly to a beat all there own.

"I want that" I said sighing.

Thomas followed my gaze and said "I know. I want that too. I've wanted that for a long time."

"Does it get better?" I asked.

"Eventually" said Thomas.

"April" came my mother's voice from behind me. I turned around to see my mother racing towards me.

"We have to go right now" she said.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Someone has broken into your grandparents house. We have to leave."

Thomas and I followed the rest of the family out of the restaurant. We piled into my grandpa's station wagon, with Savannah and Silas sitting on my and Thomas' laps.

When we got to the house, the yard was filled with cops and neighbors. Edgar and Alan were standing off to the side. My mom and grandparents talked to the cops while Thomas and I talked to Edgar and Alan.

"What happened?" I asked.

"We were on the side of the house when it happened. They broke through the tall windows at the back of the house. They were gone by the time we got there" said Edgar.

"Who broke in?" asked Thomas.

"We're not sure, but it was probably David and his friends" said Alan.

Thomas wrapped his arm around my waste. I instinctively searched for the kids. Savannah and Silas were running towards us.

"Mommy we're hungry" said Savannah, tugging on my dress.

"Sshh not right now" I said.

When we entered the house, everything looked as we had left it with the exception of the back window.

Glass had been sprayed across the kitchen floor. The table and chairs were strewn across the room, resting in unusual positions. The light fixture that hung over the kitchen table lay broken on the tile floor with the electrical wires jutting from a gap in the ceiling.

My grandparents and mom continued to talk to the police while Thomas and I investigated the damage.

"I don't understand" I thought so only Thomas could hear me.

"It had to be David. Normal burglars would've taken something" said Thomas.

"I'm hungry" I said.

"Lets get out of here. We can take Savannah and Silas with us."

"Perfect" I said.

"We'll be back, Mom" I said. "I'm going to take Thomas home."

"Be very careful" she said.

"I will" I said.

We walked through the crowd of police to the front door. I glanced over my shoulder to see my mom, glaring at me from the kitchen. She knew.


	9. Chapter 9

"Where are we going?" I asked once we made it through the thinning crowd of people in front of my house.

"There's something you should know about me" said Thomas as he was leading the way. Savannah and Silas were walking between Thomas and I. Even though they could never be seriously injured or die, I didn't like the thought of them walking behind us. Something told me to keep a close eye on them that night, because you never know who might be watching you.

"What's that?" I asked.

"I have a bit of a sweet tooth" called Thomas over his shoulder.

"Meaning?" I asked.

"Meaning there are nights when I pray on people who are younger than me. Not kids, just people who are younger" he said.

"And where are we going to satisfy this sweet tooth?" I asked.

"There's a university around here with some girls dorms. There are some boys' dorms for you" he said.

"You're bad" I said, smiling.

The school was Branch University. The school was dark, but the brick buildings loomed over us like they knew what was to come. We journeyed over to the girls dorms first. Thomas positioned himself on the stone steps outside the front door while Savannah, Silas, and I hid in the shadows casted by the trees along the side of the building.

Soon a gaggle of 20 something year old girls came pouring out of a car in front of the building. They reeked of alcohol. Thomas approached them, saying something about a party on a nearby beach. Not knowing what they were getting themselves into, they drunkenly accepted the invitation from a complete stranger.

Thomas led them around the building to where the rest of us were waiting.

"Who invited the munchkins?" asked one girl.

"Leave 'em alone" said Thomas.

"We need more boys" said another girl, "and ditch the midgets."

"April, you want to get the boys?"

I ventured over to the boys dorm, pulling my dress down a little to show more chest.

I was surprised to see a large group of boys sitting on the porch outside of the building. With it being the weekend, I thought they would've been out.

"Can we help you?" asked one guy.

"Maybe. I'm looking for a bunch of guys. You interested?" I asked.

"Depends. Watcha need us for?" asked another.

"There's a party on the beach. There's a bunch of poor, lonely girls with no boys. It'd be an awful shame to let such a party go to waste" I said.

"Hell" said another, "we'd be happy to help."

"Follow me" I said, turning around.

A boy with bleach blonde hair draped his muscular arm over my shoulder.

"What's your name?" asked the boy.

"April" I said.

"I'm Kyle" he said. "What's a pretty girl like you doing by yourself?"

"I have a boyfriend" I said.

"Damn, I thought I was getting lucky."

"He's not here" I said, "What he doesn't know won't kill him."

Kyle smirked.

We met the rest of the crowd at the girls dorm. The group seemed to mix well with the exception of the kids. Thomas and I led them to Thomas' cave. They ohed and awed at the site of the twinkling lights, red carpet, and gienormouse stage.

"What is this place?" asked one of the girls.

"Our house" replied Thomas.

"Who would want to live here?" asked one of the guys.

"Yeah where are the drinks? Where's the music?" asked another guy.

"They're coming, chill out" said Thomas.

Soon, the 2 groups mixed together. Thomas left to get a battery powered radio. He set it t the foot of the stage. He messed with the dial until he settled on a mix station and cranked it up.

A guy with brown hair took me by the hand and spun me around on the stage. We slow danced around the stage until I motioned to a room to the side of the stage.

He grinned and obediently followed me. The room was lit by a sing light, which dangled from a rotting rafter.

I slowly pulled him down so he sat gently in front of me.

"What's your name?" I asked.

"Brian" he replied.

"Well, Brian, I'll give you a night you'll never forget" I whispered in his ear. He quivered slightly at the sound of my voice.

I slowly pushed him to lay flat on his back. I straddled his waist and kissed him long and hard. I felt bad for this kid. He had no idea what he was getting himself into. He thought he was getting a free, one night stand.

I slowly made it down to the nape of his neck. My fangs slowly sank into his skin. He groaned but I put my hand over his mouth. His body turned cold and gray. I could taste the alcohol coursing through his veins.

Once I was done, I wiped the blood from my lips and stood to examine my work. His feet were limp and pointing towards me. His hands lay flat in the dirt. His eyes were wide and full of shock and surprise. His mouth hung open like a tunnel.

Suddenly, I heard an ear piercing scream. The music cut off. I opened the door to see what was going on.

The girls were surrounding a girl with blood on her neck and the guys were trying to beat Thomas and the kids with any object they could find. Thomas had his arms spread in front of the kids with his teeth barred.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"That little bitch tried to kill that girl!" yelled Kyle as he raised a metal bar above his head. He brought it down to strike Savannah, but Thomas wrenched it out of his hand.

"Tisk, tisk. Savannah, what have I told you about killing people? Always make it quick and make sure they can't get away" I said, shaking my head.

"What the hell is going on?" asked Kyle.

Before I could explain, two of the girls tried to escape. They made break for the front door, but didn't get far. Thomas raced after them and grabbed them by the hair. He dragged them to the stage. They kicked and screamed but we were so far down, I was sure no one could her them. Thomas grabbed a rope that was hanging from the rickety, decaying catwalks above the stage.

I thought he was going to tie up their hands and feet, but instead he tied it loosely around their necks.

"Below you" he said as he was tying up the girls, "is a trap door. It was used to make it look like people were dying or falling during plays. It's a good 10 ft drop from here to the ground. If you or anyone else in this theatre tries to escape, well, let's just say I have no problem letting you drop."

Thomas jumped off the stage and said "we'll save them for last."

"What are you?" asked Kyle.

"Should we tell them, Thomas?" I asked.

"Sure. They're gonna die anyways, so what difference does it make?"

"We're vampires" I said, flashing my fangs. The expressions of fear and panic changed to bewilderment and disbelief.

"Bullshit" said one of the guys.

"We're telling the truth, but we'd be more than happy to demonstrate if you need proof" said Thomas.

For a moment, no one moved. They weren't sure what to do.

"Mommy, I'm hungry" said Savannah.

"Have at them" I said.

We finished them off in a matter of minutes. They begged, cried, screamed, and pleaded, but the savage side of me had taken over. Once I had vamped out, there was no stopping me. April was gone. Only a blood thirsty vampire remained. The first time this happened, I was amazed at how quickly I went back to myself. I thought I would feel some sort of remorse but it never came.

Once we were done with the group, we turned to the girls on stage. One was drenched with tears while the other was nearly passed out from fear.

"Please" said the one girl through tears. "Please don't kill me! I promise I won't tell! Turn me into a vampire! Just don't kill me!"

"What'd you think, Thomas?" I asked.

"She'll tell and we don't need more vampires" he said.

"Sorry" I said, smiling. I made it quick and painless. The other girl was easy to take out. She didn't put up a fight.

"What are we going to do with the bodies?" I asked.

"Let's put them in the room with the other body" said Thomas.

Thomas and I began to stack the bodies in the room while the kids played on the stage.

"You think someone will come looking for them?" I asked.

"They always do but they never find them" he said.

"I wish we could've finished our dance" I said.

Thomas smiled and said "we will when we get to your house."

"It's amazing how David can ruin such a sweet moment without even being there" I said.

"I won't let him come between us. That'll never happen" he said. I couldn't help but smile. Thomas was different than any other guy I had met. He was sweet and protective.

"We should get back to your house" said Thomas once the bodies were put away.

"I think my mom knows about us" I said.

"About us dating?" he asked.

"No about us being vampires. I don't know how she knows, but she does" I said.

"I told my mother some time later. She claims she always knew it, but I don't know if that's right" he said.

"I thought your parents moved away from you" I said.

"They did, but I got a letter from my mother one day saying that my father was very sick and I needed to come to California immediately. He was in his final days. Even though they left me, I knew I would regret not seeing him. So, I came out here. They had a house close to where your house is now. I stayed with my dad until he passed. Surprisingly, my mother asked me to stay around after that. I asked her repeatedly about Bo, but she never said a word.

About a day or so after Dad passed, she flat out asked me if I was a vampire. I said yes then she asked me to leave. She said she wasn't going to have demons in her house. But I should've seen it coming. One time, Claire and Bo were spending the night at their house when mom took them into town for the day. They came home with vampire killing kits. Yes, they really did make vampire killing kits. I threw them out that night after the kids had gone to bed" he said.

"Do you miss your wife and kids?" I asked.

"It's gotten better with time. I don't think about them as much anymore. But I'm surprised that after all these years, I can still remember exactly what they looked like the last time I saw them."

We reached the house before I could ask my next question. My grandparents were already asleep but my mom was waiting up.

My mother and grandparents were already asleep. There was crime scene tape covering the broken window.

"Let's go upstairs" I said.

Thomas and I went out on the deck while the kids stayed inside my room. We pulled two lounge chairs together and lay next to each other. From our point of view, we could see the boardwalk, the beach, ocean, entire neighborhood, and thousands upon thousands of stars. It was perfect.

"What did your kids look like when you last saw them?" I asked, resting my head on his chest.

Thomas sighed and said "the last time I saw Claire, she was very sick. When she was healthy, she was beautiful. She had long, dark brown hair with freckles and brown eyes, like her mother. She always wore a big, white bow in her hair. She was wearing a little white dress the day before she got sick. The dress had puffy sleeves and a belt around the waste. Her great grandmother had sent it from Paris. It came with black stockings and black, leather shoes. Her great grandmother couldn't get it through her head that Claire was a farm girl and it just wasn't right for her to wear fancy dresses. However, seeing as how we were going to the city that day, she wanted to look like the older ladies and insisted on wearing the dress. She was also wearing a gold locket Anna gave her when she was born. I still have the locket along with my wedding band. I never wear them, but I still have them."

"It must be terrible to lose a kid. I couldn't imagine having to go through that, especially when it's just you" I said.

"For a while, I struggled with trying to figure out why Anna died. I wished it was me instead of her. But when Claire got sick, I realized there was no way Anna could've handled this. I was sure that was the reason why she went first."

"I had a cousin who died a few years ago. I don't remember them much, but I do remember my grandma saying that when they died, it so quiet and peaceful" I said. This was a cousin on my dad's side. I'm not too close with anyone on my dad's side of the family.

"It was like that with Claire and I. I moved her bed into my room as soon as she got sick. I figured I wouldn't get sick and I could take care of her during the day without having to leave the darkness of my room. The last night was rough. She kept going on and on about how she saw Anna standing in the doorway, smiling. It was then that I knew she had hours left, if that. I wrapper her up in blankets and carried her outside. She loved rocking on the porch with me at night. I held her in my lap and rocked. She laid her head on my chest and gave one last, strong breath. Then it was over. We buried her the next day in our family plot in the local cemetery in Kansas."

"What about Bo?"

"Bo had a head full of brown curls. He had green eyes that would sometimes change to blue. The last time I saw him, or that I for sure saw him, he was wearing a black suit and a white shirt. We had just come from a funeral for a little girl from Bo's school. Her parents said she drowned in the nearby river, but I knew what happened. We were home for a few minutes when my parents showed up unexpectedly. My mother said she knew what really happened to the girl and she wasn't going to have her grandson living with a murderer. She carried Bo out of the house while my father restrained me. I was left without any explanation. Suddenly, I heard a man shouting from outside the house. He was demanding I come out and give myself up. I knew exactly what was going on. The lynch mob didn't scare me anymore, but they had a justice all their own. No sheriff would dare stop them. I packed up my stuff and left before they could burn the house down" he said.

"What'd you do after that?" I asked.

"Well, I a nomad for a few years. I moved from town to town, never staying more than a few days. Then I heard they were making a new town out in California. That's what brought me here. I figured a new town would be a good place to start over. So I came out here to find that the town was a little more developed than what I expected, but it was still new. At that time, there were a few stores down along Main Street and a few houses tucked away from the beach. The theatre hadn't come yet. "

"How'd you meet David?" I asked. I was always curious as to how they knew each other. Sure, part of it was because they were vampires, but I knew they met before David was a vampire.

"David was the town bad boy. He was always getting thrown in jail for something. One night I was hanging out in the saloon, just minding my own business. David was sitting at another table, drunk as all get out. He had his arm draped around a whore who lived in the saloon. She was unnaturally pale, if you catch my drift. I was trying to decide if she was a vampire or not when David saw me eyeing her. He got mad and whipped out his knife. He gave me this lovely scar" he said, pointing to the scar on his face. "He went upstairs with the girl after that and the rest is history."

"Have you ever thought about getting remarried?" I asked.

"Not really, but I'm not completely opposed to the idea" he said.

I smiled at the thought of being married to Thomas. Thomas, Silas, Savannah and I could spend eternity together. We could move back to Kentucky. Thomas could have a new family. I wouldn't have to worry about dying alone. I'd be set for life.

Suddenly, I heard a noise come from the back of the house. Thomas and I jumped up, startled.

"What the hell was that?" I asked.

"I have no idea. I'll investigate" said Thomas.

"I'm coming with you" I said.


End file.
